Forming an assessment district

By forming an assessment district to fund their portion of an undergrounding project, residents in a neighborhood can turn over the project management responsibilities to the city. Here's how it works:

•A majority of the neighborhood must sign a survey, each resident putting forward a $500 deposit, to show the city there's support for undergrounding.

•The city creates an official boundary map, working with local utilities and estimating each resident's share of the costs. Costs are different for each resident, ranging from $6,000-$45,000, based on a formula that determines the benefits each will receive from undergrounding.

•The project goes before the city's Design Review Board.

•Residents cast an official ballot, and the assessment district goes to the City Council for a public hearing.

LAGUNA BEACH – Drooping wires and tangles of overhead utilities that interrupt ocean views are an aesthetic blight, according to some residents, and in a city that's experienced its share of natural disasters, the power lines – possibly to blame for last weekend's South Laguna brush fire – have officials concerned about safety.

Fire officials and Southern California Edison officials are investigating whether a downed power line may have caused the blaze that burned about 4 acres on Sept. 16, coming within a few hundred yards of homes.

About 70 percent of Laguna Beach's power lines are overhead, unlike in its master-planned neighbors, and the lines have for years inspired fears of blocked access routes and lost services during disaster. Other older cities, in north Orange County in particular, are similarly served by overhead lines, though access and topography make them less of a concern. In other areas with a similar fire history and access issues, such as Silverado and Modjeska canyons, overhead utilities haven't given the community cause for concern as much as overgrown brush and tree limbs have.

Downed lines are fairly rare, said Frank Wasko, Edison's region manager for Laguna Beach, and are usually the result of a car hitting a utility pole or severe weather. The system is engineered to withstand wear and wind, he said.

"It's built to last," Wasko said.

HISTORIC CONCERNS

With an eye toward public safety, the city is in the design phase of burying utilities in the Big Bend area of Laguna Canyon. Thousands of residents also have gone through the time and expense of forming assessment districts to pay for burying lines in their neighborhoods.

State guidelines require inspections of all underground equipment every three years and all poles every five years. In Laguna Beach, Edison inspects all above-ground equipment yearly, Wasko said.

"We take safety as a top priority," he said.

Reports of power lines arcing in Bluebird Canyon inspired a city official to ask if the poles in the area were grounded, a safety measure that helps prevent fires. Wasko said Edison responded by checking all the poles, which were grounded, a year ahead of schedule.

"If there's ever a question from a customer or a city official, we will go out to inspect," he said.

Elsewhere in the region, power lines have been linked to several fires. The U.S. Attorney's Office announced this week that San Diego Gas & Electric agreed to pay a $6.4 million settlement related to the 2007 Witch Creek Fire, which burned more than 44,000 acres in Cleveland National Forest.

In Orange County, a downed line caused a 1996 fire in Tustin that destroyed 10 homes and damaged 19 more. In 1982, a downed line caused a 17,000-acre fire in Gypsum Canyon that destroyed 14 homes.

With its history of fires, landslides, severe storms and other disasters, Laguna has long shown support for burying utilities. The issue comes up in the safety element of the city's general plan, as well as in a report recapping a 2011 emergency-preparedness workshop. But downed lines also raise concerns about access. The geography of Laguna Beach offers only two routes in and out of town – Laguna Canyon Road and Coast Highway.

GOING UNDERGROUND IN THE CANYON

The Big Bend project is meant to address access concerns, and design is underway. In addition, Edison expects to bring an estimate to the city on costs to put all equipment forthe entire canyon underground within the next month.

Councilwoman Toni Iseman said putting utilities underground became a top priority for her when she saw the problems created by drivers hitting poles in Laguna Canyon. The road would be blocked for several hours, residents would go without power, and live wires on the ground posed a hazard. During an earthquake or other natural disaster, downed lines could leave residents trapped in their city, she said.

"We have to fix that," she said.

Once such a project is complete in Laguna Canyon, Iseman would like the city to turn its attention to other roads that serve as parts of evacuation routes, including Coast Highway and Glenneyre Street. An extensive project won't be cheap, and Iseman said bonds might be necessary.

A wildfire looms above homes near the Ruby's Diner on Coast Highway in Laguna Beach on Sept. 16. EUGENE GARCIA, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A transformer smoulders on top of a utility pole near St Catherine of Sienna Catholic Parish School after a wildfire here in Laguna Beach. The school is on Coast Highway next to Ruby's Diner. EUGENE GARCIA, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
With the Pacific Ocean in the background, drivers head up Thalia Street in Laguna Beach Thursday. Overhead power lines here and elsewhere in the city have long been a safety and aesthetic concern for city residents and officials. H. LORREN AU JR., THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Motorists head northbound along Laguna Canyon Road at Sun Valley Drive in Laguna Beach Thursday. Downed power lines may have been a cause of the recent brush fire in South Laguna. H. LORREN AU JR., THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Overhead power lines tower over Laguna Canyon Road, south of Laguna College of Art + Design in Laguna Beach. Plans are in the works to underground the lines in the Big Bend area of the canyon. H. LORREN AU JR., THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Overhead power lines drape across the Big Bend section of Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach. The city is in the design stages of a project to put the utility lines underground here. H. LORREN AU JR., THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Motorists drive southbound along Laguna Canyon Road heading toward downtown Laguna Beach. Overhead power lines are a concern in the city because of the potential for downed lines to block access in an emergency. H. LORREN AU JR., THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A view of the brush fire at 12:15 p.m. Sept. 16 from Jeffrey Murray PHOTO COURTESY OF JEFFREY MURRAY

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